Chapter 92: So What Are the Benefits of the Akatsuki Organization? Free Manicures?
"Those guys in Konoha are getting really anxious. The Fourth Raikage and Bee are heading out together." When Kenichi found Sasori, Sasori was laughing, and he was laughing hard.
Then Sasori noticed the person behind Kenichi and coughed lightly. His gaze slid past Kenichi and landed on Orochimaru, who stood there with his arms crossed.
"Ahem. My teacher said he wants to record some parameters for the weapon I'm researching," Kenichi explained the moment he caught that probing look.
Even as he said it, his expression turned a little strange. He truly had not expected his teacher to tag along just to watch a thermobaric bomb go off.
Kenichi had wanted to refuse at first. Whenever his teacher was present, it felt like giving a public presentation, except the only audience member could kill you and critique your methodology in the same breath.
But Orochimaru's offer was simply too generous.
If Kenichi brought him to observe the explosion process, Kenichi would receive his teacher's latest research on the Impure World Reincarnation technique and a full set of bomb proof defensive barriers for the lab.
That kind of deal made it difficult to keep a straight face.
Of course, there was also the simpler truth. Stopping Orochimaru from doing what he wanted was usually harder than stopping a landslide by politely asking it to reconsider.
"Is that so?" Sasori gave Orochimaru an odd look.
Before, Sasori's understanding of Orochimaru was simple. A powerful shinobi. Kage level. A legend.
But after hearing certain things from Kenichi, Sasori could not help feeling that something about this was… strange.
Orochimaru noticed the look as well and felt equally puzzled. He knew of Sasori of the Red Sand, but he did not know him well enough to understand why he was staring.
Just then, Pain dropped in from a distance and spoke coldly.
"Kū, you and Hoku need to go. Konoha has issued us a war mission."
Kenichi froze for a second.
He had just promised to take his teacher to watch the explosion, and in the next breath, Nagato assigned his teacher a mission.
"Is it just the two of us?" Orochimaru's patience was visibly thinning. He had joined Akatsuki for the Rinnegan. Lately, he felt more like a laborer who existed to print money for the organization.
"Several subordinates will also travel with you," Nagato added.
A few unfamiliar shinobi appeared behind them. Kakuzu was at the very back, expressionless as always.
Kenichi looked them over with curiosity. He knew Akatsuki had recruited extra members before, but most of them died later. The ones who survived to the end were monsters.
These people were strangers to him, which usually meant they were the kind who would vanish after a few missions.
"I can refuse, right?" Orochimaru said, impatience sharpening his voice. "I already told my student I'm going to observe his experiment."
"This is the organization's order." Nagato answered with a single sentence.
This mission came with a huge payout. Konoha was paying because they were genuinely struggling.
Contrary to Konoha's expectations, Kumogakure had not weakened after the attack. If anything, they had turned even more violent. The AB duo personally entering the battlefield had put enormous pressure on Konoha.
The other villages that might have sent troops all slowed down and watched from the sidelines. They wanted to wait until Konoha and Kumogakure bled each other dry, then sweep in and profit.
Because of that, Konoha had to keep forces in reserve to guard against opportunists, which made dealing with Kumogakure's relentless offense even harder.
That was why Konoha was urging Akatsuki so aggressively.
"Of course," Nagato added, "the organization will also provide more generous rewards."
In the end, Akatsuki was not held together by vague ideals. Shinobi who became strong rarely stayed foolish.
If the organization only offered empty promises, no one would risk their life for it.
So Akatsuki's benefits were, in fact, decent.
For example, there were free manicures.
Konan had once asked Kenichi what color nail polish he wanted. He had politely refused. He already felt out of place without wearing any, but he still did not want to paint his nails.
Nagato's incentive system for Kenichi was contribution points. Complete missions. Bring in funds. Earn points. Exchange them for rare rewards.
Akatsuki also had strange resources that no other group possessed. Things like black rods. Nagato had even implied that if Kenichi performed well, he could gain access to even more mysterious items.
Kenichi suspected Nagato was referring to the Gedo Mazo.
Of course, Nagato's own strength was another reason the organization could keep moving at all.
"Then can I study the Rinnegan?" Orochimaru licked his lips, eyes narrowing with interest as he looked at Nagato.
Nagato fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. "No. But I can let you study the thing you're truly interested in up close."
Orochimaru agreed instantly.
That made Kenichi even more curious. The ease of that agreement meant the reward was more tempting than a thermobaric bomb.
If it was not the Rinnegan, then what else could it be?
Kenichi's mind kept circling back to one answer.
The Gedo Mazo.
Kenichi wanted to ask, but Orochimaru was already leaving with Kakuzu and the others. There was no time to press further. Still, Kenichi suspected his teacher would talk once he returned.
"These guys are pathetic," Kenichi muttered as he watched the departing group. He wondered how many would survive this round.
If his teacher said Kakuzu was not someone to underestimate, then that alone was a bad omen for anyone standing next to him.
Kenichi and Sasori also prepared to depart.
Kenichi felt like he had some kind of twisted connection with Kumogakure. The first thermobaric bomb had dropped on Hidden Cloud shinobi. The second one was about to do the same.
This time, the schedule was tight and the workload was heavy, so Kenichi did not have much room for upgrades. Otherwise, he could have produced even more startling results.
"But this time, we should be able to gather real lethality data for thermobaric weapons in open terrain," Kenichi said, rubbing his hands together, excitement in his voice.
How many shinobi would be packed onto the main battlefield in the Land of Frost?
And if the AB duo were there, would he be able to collect data on how thermobaric weapons affected jinchuriki level targets?
As Kenichi's thoughts raced forward, he could not help wondering again.
In the end, what exactly were the benefits and treatment of Akatsuki supposed to be?
It could not just be ideals, right?
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